Channa R. De Silva

Dr. Channa R. De Silva is a Professor of Chemistry at Western Carolina University (WCU), located within the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Chemistry and Physics. He joined WCU in 2010 after completing his PhD at the University of Arizona and postdoctoral research at institutions including the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Arizona’s Materials Science & Engineering Department and Bio5 Institute.

Education: BS in Chemistry from University of Kelaniya (Sri Lanka), PhD in Chemistry from University of Arizona (2007).

Research Interests:

• Nanotechnology, focusing on antimicrobial properties and toxicity of nanomaterials.
• Inorganic Materials, including lanthanide and actinide chemistry.
• Computational Chemistry for modeling molecular interactions.
• Development of luminescent probes for in vitro imaging of human and cancer cells.
• Peptide synthesis targeting G-protein coupled receptors.

Teaching: Inorganic Chemistry, General Chemistry (lecture/lab), Organic Chemistry labs, Organometallic Chemistry, Advanced Inorganic and Bioinorganic Chemistry.

He engages in science outreach at local schools and volunteers in community activities. No specific grants or awards are listed.